Not Going
by CheveronChick
Summary: "Legolas you are not going, and that is final!" Deciding whether or not to allow Legolas on the quest was a bit more complicated than the hobbits saw at the council.


**Everything belong to Tolkien.**

 **Thanks for coming I hope you like it!**

… **...**

"Legolas you are not going, and that is final!"

Elladan and Elrohir made tense eye contact, they had not heard their Ada using that tone of voice since just after their mother had sailed West. In their grief and anger, they began roaming the wilds in search of Orcs. Elrond had always disapproved of their new habit, but also realized that at the time arguing would be pointless. It wasn't until they had taken in baby Estel that Elrond finally put his foot down on the matter.

Sometimes, even for his family, it was easy to forgot that Elrond was indeed an incredibly powerful elf. His calm and serene presence could mask the ages of strife he had seen. He had not been Herald to Gil-Galad, and then Lord of one of the last elven realms for no reason. He had not survived all those battles, and a Kinslaying for no reason. He had not been raised and loved by the last sons of Feanor for no reason. When you did have cause to suddenly remember all of these things, you suddenly wished you hadn't.

Needless to say, they did not leave that day to hunt for orcs that day.

Both twins looked at their younger brother, who looked just as uncomfortable about the event unfolding before them as they did. A moment later Elladan grabbed the Aragorn by the elbow and pulled him closer, crushing him between himself and his twin. It was impossible to tell if this was just a natural reflex Elladan had acquired whenever there was danger near his littler brother, or if it was a conscious form of protection.

Legolas did not seem to be feeling the same core freezing fear when faced with such a formidable opponent, as Elrond's children did. Around them those not directly involved in the scene quickly scuttled away, fleeing in any and all directions that they could.

There were also times when one forgot that Legolas' father was the Elven King. A creature known for his iron will, unending stubbornness, and harsh anger. For the most part, Legolas did not often show theses qualities in himself. Not because he was not capable of it, but because you often did not have a reason to show it.

However, it looked like Elrond had just given him a reason.

Aragorn recognized the same hardening of the eyes he had witnessed on Thranduil countless times, followed by a slight head tilt and clenched jaw. In the blink of an eye, Legolas' entire demeanor had changed. Their pleasant woodland friend had melted away, and in his place stood the formidable Prince of Mirkwood. Carved and shaped through heartache, pain, and supported by a father stronger than steel. The Prince who had looked Sauron's evil in the eye for longer than Aragorn had even been alive.

The twins and had seen enough arguments between their father and the King to know they did not want to witness the one about to happen with the Prince.

"With all do respect, Lord Elrond, there is nothing you can do to prevent it."

For half a moment Elrohir thought his father might explode. Disobeying the Lord of Imladris was a very uncommon occurrence to begin with, but disobeying him when he felt this strongly about something was almost unheard of.

Elrond took the deepest, and longest breath in that he could, before exhaling just as slowly. "I can, and I will. Your father expects you home, your people need you. I cannot allow you to leave on such a dangerous task. I will absolutely not allow it."

Legolas crossed his arms, every inch of him conveyed his defiance, "How long do you plan to keep me then?" He stared at Elrond waiting for an answer, but continued speaking when the Lord stayed silent.

"A month? Nine months? A few years? Until the world ends? How long, Lord Elrond, will you keep me here against my will."

Elrond's son's then turned briefly to look at Glorfindel who leaned in a doorway nearby, looking remarkably unruffled by the entire situation. He noticed their attention but only offered them a raised eyebrow.

"You say my people need me, yet you will lock me away from them here. I can assure you, the only way you are going to keep me here is if I am locked away. What will you tell my father, of my captivity?"

"Legolas." Elrond began, calmer than before. It was unknown if that was because he was actually calmer, or if he was just hiding it better.

Legolas had no interest in masking his anger and continued talking as if he hadn't been interrupted. Another habit Aragorn had witness in Thranduil. "You cannot keep me here indefinitely, you and I both know that. The moment you let me go, I am going to try and find Estel"

Everyone else present knew it too, there would be no keeping Legolas here for any extended period of time. So desperate was the Woodland realm lately that keeping one of their captains could doom them. There was also no telling what resentment Legolas might brew during his stay, feelings his father was more that likely to reciprocate tenfold.

There would be no keeping Thranduil from his son. There never had been.

"I am trying to keep you safe, Legolas." Elrond tried again, changing tactics to try and persuade the much younger elf.

Legolas let out a humorous bark of laughter, "I am far safer traveling with the Ring than I will be if you send me home."

They all knew that was probably true, too.

Long had Elrond and his family been hearing about the ghastly injuries inflicted to the warriors of Mirkwood over and over again. They were resilient creatures, Wood Elves, but resilience always comes to an end.

"There are Orcs, Wargs, Wolves and Spiders in greater numbers than I ever care to think about. Who knows what other evils are brewing on our doorstep that he has not set loose yet. Our trees are dying, our water is poisoned. Everyday it seems new horrors are crawling down the walls of Dul Guldur. Every morning I wake half expecting to find a Balrog on our doorstep."

Elrond's sons snuck another look at Glorfindel at the mention of Balrogs. It was not uncommon for the Balrog slayer to excuse himself and leave whenever they came up in conversation, he still had nightmares about the fall both dreaming and awake. They did not see the tenseness and fear they had grown accustomed to, but deep sympathy and sorrow.

"I have been stabbed, beaten, poisoned, bitten, and burned. If that Ring is not destroyed, none of my people will make it to the end of the Third Age. Me, least of all."

Elrond sighed, and rubbed his temples. This time, it was his turn to glance at Glorfindel, who still lounged casually against the doorway. The Balrog slayer was just as helpful to the Lord as he had been to his sons'.

He turned back to the prince, "Legolas, your people are always welcome to come here. You do not have to endure that life, I have told you countless time. We cannot help you fight your war, but we can help shelter you from it."

"We will not leave the tree's. If they are to burn, they will not burn alone."

Aragorn often wished he could feel what the wood elves felt for nature, their forest most of all. He had seen evidence of it often when he visited the realm, branches would bend of their own accord to assist the elves in whatever manner they could. Branches could form canopies with their leaves to shield bad weather, or lower themselves to be easily leaped into.

Sometimes, he liked to think he could hear their whispers, even if he could not understand their meaning. Yet he could never tell if it was their whispers, or the wind. He knew they whispered, though. To their King most often.

There was a reason no one came in or out of the ElvenKing's realm without him hearing of it. The warning that the tree's had both eyes and ears was based on fact, not fiction. If you did anything of interest around the tree's, the ElvenKing heard of it. It was this reason that the wood elves had managed to survive this long, the tree's their best to keep their beloved elves one step ahead of those that would do them harm.

No, the elves world never leave the tree's.

If any of the warriors within Imladris had been able to keep up with the Greenwood elves in the tree's, the probably would have offered their assistance long ago. Currently though, the only way through the forest one could take on foot was the Elven road. Everywhere else in the realm was easier, and safer, to travel by the tree's.

Tree's were not the only problem to be faced, though. There were poisonous mists that appeared and disappeared seemingly in the blink of an eye, dark creatures other than spiders loose in the woods, and a tangible sense of confusion that seemed to have a vindictive mind of its own. None could keep their bearings in the forest any longer, except for the wood elves. Without guids from the Elves that lived there, all visitors world find themselves hopelessly lost. Just as the dwarves had.

There were Orcs trap, Spider traps, and Elven traps littering the forest at every turn. It was a war fought unlike any other before it. A war of trickery, stealth, and boundless amount of gritting determination from both sides.

"You know as well as I that we cannot leave our home. We could not even get half of our people out of the woods without them realizing what we were doing. Every single creature of evil nearby would come pouring after us, our only hope for life is to continue making them think we're still more powerful than they are. We are hanging on by the skin of our teeth, Elrond. We _need_ them to think they cannot beat us, not yet. That illusion shatters the very moment we decide to run."

Thranduil and his people's position of superiority truly was an illusion at this point in time, one Aragorn was endlessly amazed the wood elves continued to pull off. At the very least, the two forces were equal in strength. But while the forces of darkness grew, the number of elves only fell. Drastically.

"Even if they did run, how long do you think until the darkness would follow them out of the tree's and into the world? How long would they remain safe, here? " Glorfindel asked, straightening his back and approaching the Lord and the Prince.

Elrohir pulled Aragorn back further, wary of the wildcard who had just entered the debate.

Glorfindel continued speaking, ignoring the look Elrond shot him, "The only reason the evil there has not yet spread, the only reason we are not being assaulted from both sides is because of Thranduil and his people. If the evil there is allowed to grow unchecked as it does in Mordor, we stand no chance in this fight."

The fire in Legolas' eyes blazed anew, feeding off of his new ally "What good am I at home, one arrow in the thousands that have been spent with no effect. I can make a difference when I go with Estel, a real difference."

Glorfindel looked at the Prince with fondness and a certain degree of admiration, "Perhaps if we had had more Elves like you, Legolas, Gondolin might have stood a better chance. Perhaps we could have been like Greenwood, struggling but holding on nonetheless."

An unnatural silence descended onto the group, the mention that terrible battle usually had that effect. But never had they heard the fall of the great city compared to the plague that was being fought off by the woodland elves. Legolas looked both full of pride at the ancient elfs words, and seconds away from melting into his own despair.

Legolas' tone of voice conveyed the same thing his appearance did. The anger was still there but colored deeply with desperation and despair. "The Ring needs to be destroyed, and I plan on doing everything within my power to get it there. If I am to go to Mandos either way, I am going to cause as much damage on the way out that I can."

Elrond glowered at the two of them, thinking.

"I need him, Ada." Aragorn cut in before Elrond had a chance to respond. The human experitly ducked Elladan's hand that had come up to clamp over his mouth, and swatted away Elrohir hand who sought the same destination. "We need him. We need his hearing, his eyesight, his bow, his spirit, his knowledge of the enemy."

Aragorn pulled away from his brothers retraining grasp and came to stand next to his father, ignoring Elladan warning hiss. He tugged on the Elven Lords' sleeve, like he had done when he was very young and attempting to convey his great need for something. Usually a cookie. "I cannot do this without him. I do not even want to try without him. Ada please, he has to come."

Elrond cut his eyes sideways, to look at the desperation in his youngest sons' eyes. Desperate for his best friend to accompany him on the quest of destiny and ruin.

Glorfindel wandered to the sidelines of the arguments once more, retreating back to the same doorway as before and resuming his slouch. Still looking relatively unbothered, as if he had known the outcome of the argument before it even started. The sons of Elrond would not have been surprised if he _had_ known.

Legolas did not move a single inch, his stare unwavering from where they rested on the Lord's face. There were times when Aragorn forgot that while his father was a powerful elf, Legolas had grown to have a certain power of his own. He was young in the eyes of the other elves, yet when he spoke others listened.

"You cannot keep me here." Legolas' voice was softer than before, but not less certain. "I am going, and that's final."

Another tense silence swam in the air around them. Then, slowly, Elrond approached Legolas. Having made his decision on the matter.

Still, Legolas did not move but watched intently as the Lord approached him. Ready for whatever he was going to do. Stopping just in front of the Prince, Elrond placed two hands on either side of his face like he did to his own children when he wanted them to pay full attention to him. "Please at least try and keep yourself from the halls."

Legolas swallowed hard, the angry demeanor melting away as quickly as it had come. He nodded his head solemnly, "I will. I swear it."

The Lord sighed again, pulling Legolas in for a fierce and loving hug. "What on Arda am I going to tell Thranduil

Pulling away, Legolas' face splint into his customary smile, "Blame it all on Mithrandir, Ada hasn't had a chance to speak to him about the dwarves and the dragon yet anyways."

… **.**

 **Hope you have a good day!**

 **I would love to hear from you**


End file.
